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Friday, October 31, 2014

This is the sixth week of GAGs and I've many more in store for you. Because I am presently in a different time zone my compilation is coming to you a bit later this week.As previously stated the selections here are subject to my personal biases (I favour posts that contain original material) and I make no apology for that.

Presenting in no particular order some selections from my RSS feeds this week: 1. And I'm a proud one too, Vance.

Wandering along a street in Islington we saw this sign. It is part of "The Streets they left Behind" project which is currently being undertaken by Islington Heritage Service. This sees plaques being installed on Islington streets to remember all those who died from each respective street.

The following video from the BBC gives further information on the project.:

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Opposite The London Metropolitan Archives is a delightful and attractive park "Spa Fields." Here are some snaps I took on a recent visit. It seems that Spa Fields wasn't always a park for the living. I'm pleased that Mr GeniAus suggested we take that route.

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Together with my fellow 2015 Congress Official Bloggers Pauleen Cass and Shauna Hicks I will be sharing interviews with Congress presenters, attendees and organisers on this blog from time to time. These may be in the form of written responses to questions we pose or they may be videos we record using Google Hangouts on Air.

I thank Congress presenter and official blogger Pauleen Cass for being first cab off the rank, Pauleen and I hooked up earlier this week for a Google Hangout on Air where we discussed family history and Congress matters. You can watch Pauleen's interview below in this post or via this link at my Youtube channel.

As I am travelling to Salt Lake City for Rootstech in 2015 I was hoping that I would receive an invitation to be an Official Blogger once more for quite a few reasons some of which are selfish. Well tonight my spirits were lifted when I saw an email from Paul Nauta, Rootstech Public Affairs, with the Subject line"You're Invited to be a RootsTech 2015 Official Ambassador!"The Official Bloggers' role has morphed to Ambassador (I guess) to recognise that broad range of social media platforms that are now being embraced by family historians. So for 2015 I will not only be blogging about Rootstech I will be using Facebook, Google+, Google Hangouts Twitter and Youtube to spread the word.I already have an idea for the competition I will be running for someone to win a free Rootstech registration If you have already registered then if you are the lucky winner you will get a refund. Please watch this blog for details.I am burning the midnight oil but I just had to share my news straight away. My blog will proudly wear its new badge on its left sidebar for the next several monthsWill I see you at Rootstech?

Friday, October 24, 2014

This fifth week of GAGs has netted me a bumper list of posts so I have had trouble making my selections. I am pleased to hear that my list is directing my readers to new blogs.I thank my genimate in San Diego, Randy Seaver, for adding my links to his weekly "Best of the Geneablogs", I am sure that your readers will enjoy some of the offerings I highlight from genies downunder.As previously stated the selections here are subject to my personal biases (I favour posts that contain original material) and I make no apology for that.

Presenting in no particular order some selections from my RSS feeds this week: 1. No doubt the title of this post from Chris Paton which mentions Aussie research drew many people to his blog this week. BTW this is one foreign blog all Aussies should read.

In that time the 295 other genealogists (and friends) from all around the world who have joined our team have lent $US122,000 through 4,608 loans. They have made a difference to so many lives. You can see the loans I have made here: http://www.kiva.org/lender/jill4772

I love lending through Kiva because:

I can choose where my money goes

I can dedicate loans to friends and family

I get to know about the people I loan to through reading their profiles and seeing their photos

All of each $25 I loan goes straight to the borrower (I add a little to each loan for admin funds)

I learn about real people in other countries and the problems they face

I prefer to lend than to give. As I can reinvest my funds when they are repaid I feel that my charity dollars work very hard and return great results for the borrowers and for me as a lender.

I get a real buzz from helping other people and families.

I enjoy the camaraderie of my fellow team members.

I note that the number of new members joining the Genealogists for Families Group on Kiva has slowed to a trickle this year, it would be great if our ranks could grow so that we could do even more good.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Less then 30 years ago letters and articles like the one I share below were a major means of seeking assistance to solve genealogical mysteries. Although people today still put notices in newspapers the internet and social media have opened up many more avenues for communication and collaboration.

Today I can sit in my study and find immediate answers for David. In less than a minute I found Public Trees on Ancestry for Charles Michael Woodward. I found there also many references to Richard Gabell. On Trove and at the Australian War Memorial I found information on Richard and Elizabeth's son, also named Richard.

Monday, October 20, 2014

About nine weeks ago when I had a bit of time on my hands I set up the Geneadictionary over on Wordpress. As I have been using blogger for eons this was a brave move for me. I didn't know if the Geneadictionary would be a flash in the pan or if I would be able to find enough content to maintain a regular posting schedule.

Several of my genimates look out for and even coin words and phrases to add to the dictionary, I am so grateful to them for their assistance, as I add their suggestions I try to add their names to the list of Genealogophiles at the Geneadictionary.

I seem to have developed a heightened awareness for Genealogisms which seem to jump out at me as I read genealogy news. I find myself waking up at night and grabbing my phone to add to Evernote a new word, phrase or acronym that has just hit me.

Can you believe that I have 279 entries for inclusion in the Geneadictionary saved in my Evernote folder? I think the Geneadictionary is here to stay.

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Stacey, one of my friends in the library world, posted this tweet this morning.

Stacey's Tweet 19/10/2014

As a lover of alliteration I hooked onto those three words used by Tony Wagner as he was talking to a group of teachers at a recent conference in the US. Play-passion-purpose seems to sum up my motivation for exploring genealogy and technology.I love to Play around with new software, techtoys and apps but aimless play doesn't give me great satisfaction. I have a Passion for genealogy and family history which gives a Purpose to my Play. Without that Passion and Purpose I doubt that I would enjoy my Play so much.

Friday, October 17, 2014

GAGs is into its fourth week with a new selection of blog posts I have read and enjoyed for various reasons over the past week. I am so impressed by the quality of many of the posts from downunder I read each week, our geneablogging is going from strength to strength.As previously stated the selections here are subject to my personal biases and I make no apology for that.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

As you know I often dive into a new adventure and then realise that I somehow need to keep track of what I am doing. I need to create some more records and, as organisation isn't my strong point, I call them revolting records.

I have now put together my fourth list of GAGs - GeniAus Gems. I have a system in Evernote where I save posts for consideration for the next week's compilation but I haven't kept a record (except for my GAGs posts) of the bloggers and blogs I have actually included in one of my lists.

I need to do this because I can't remember in my head which are the blogs and bloggers I have nominated and because this evening it struck me that such a list would be an additional evaluation tool for when (and if I am invited) I help Inside History Magazine select their Top 50 Blogs you need to read in 2015.

Just like the girl in Robin Klein's the Listmaker I am going to make a list but should it also be in Evernote or should it be on a spreadsheet in Google Drive? I like these tools because I can acccess them across devices but I just can't seem to make my mind up

It always takes me a while to come down after a GeniAus Hangout on Air and last Tuesday's was no exception. I was joined by an exceptional group of panelists who had so much to say and share about the topic, CGD (Continuing Genealogical Development). I do enjoy chatting with these folk in the informal atmosphere of a Google hangout on Air.

Unfortunately due to the stormy conditions in and around Sydney several panelists were not able to stay the distance. I'm sorry we missed your contributions but appreciate the effort you made to connect.

I detected several themes coming through in the conversations. These included the importance of organisation, citing one's sources and the value of blogging. Panelists took part in a range of traditional and online learning activities and appreciated podcasts, hangouts and webinars. It was interesting to note that many of the panelists work or have worked in IT related jobs and that most of them are geneabloggers.

When I put the panelists on the spot and asked them to nominate a presenter they would recommend these names were mentioned Lisa-Louise Cooke, Chris Paton, Thomas MacEntee, Dick Eastman, Richard Reid, Kerry Farmer, Maria Northcote, Helen Smith, Kim Phillips, Cyndi Ingle and GeniAus. Watch out for them at an event near you or online.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

The fruit is soaking and although I have covered the bowl I can smell the rum wafting from my kitchen. Tomorrow I will be baking the first of my Christmas cakes for this year. I have a trusty recipe from a friend, I don't have my grandmother's because she didn't have one. She just put in a bit of this and a bit of that and her cakes always turned out.

For those who ar contemplating baking a cake there is plenty of advice to be found on Trove.

Monday, October 13, 2014

When I was last at Rootstech in 2013 I organised a casual dinner for my genimates from downunder and anyone else who wanted to join us. As well as Aussies we had US Kiwi Roger Moffat and Lisa, Australian Kiwi Michelle Patient, Audrey Collins from England and Marie Dougan from Scotland.

Alona Tester and Liz Pidgeon at the 2013 Dinner

My Aussie Genimates Alona Tester and Jenny Joyce have already indicated that they will be available on Tuesday 10 February, 2015 so I have set that as a date for a pre-Rootstech get together, for arrival no later than 7:00pm We shall return to The Californis Pizza Kitchen at The Gateway Center as it provides many menu options for an economical meal, is just a couple of stops from The Plaza, Radisson and other hotels on the free Trax tram and is not as crowded as the restuarants in the newer City Creek Center. I will warn CPK of our impending invasion.

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Mr GeniAus, my friends and family members have an inflated opinion of my expertise in genealogy matters and often refer questions to me that are outside my sphere of expertise (which is quite limited).

I have been helping out an old friend from my church youth club days with basic help. She compiles a list of questions and contacts me every few months to share her finds and seek guidance. Among her questions this week she wanted to know where she could go to print out family tree charts. As she uses Legacy software I suggested she see what Tessa Keough has shared on Youtube to see if there are any answers there.

Evelyn - Church Youth Club Picnic 1968

Preparing a chart for printing at Officeworks or the like might be a challenge for Evelyn so I want to suggest other option. I also mentioned Janet Hovorka, The Chart Chick, in Utah who has loads of expertise in printing charts, I guess she would post to Australia.There was also a lady in Canberra who offered this service but, as meeting her was before my Evernote days, I don't have her contact details.

Saturday, October 11, 2014

I travelled to Baulkham Hills Branch Library last Wednesday to present a talk on online resources for family history. I was rather nervous about doing this talk as a friend of fifty years standing announced a couple of days prior announced that she was coming along to hear me. Now talking to a room of strangers is daunting enough but speaking in front of someone who is close to me always sets the nerves going.But it was okay, my friend reckons that I didn't show any signs of nervousness. It was a small but enthusiastic audience who came along, all were eager to learn and most contributed during the lively session. Antonella, the librarian who looked after me was a great ambassador for hr library and I thank her for organising the event and for the morning tea provided. That was a nice surprise.

My aims for this event was to make attendees aware of the value of online resources for research and to share some resources they may not have used. I was so pleased , when I returned home to receive the following email:"Just a brief note to say thanks for your talk at Baulkham Hills Library yesterday. It was superb. As a definite amateur , your talk filled in a lot of gaps for me. Some sites were old favourites but many were new ....and interesting! I love the stories that I find. The names and dates are good but it is the stories, choices and gossip that fascinate me. Warm regards"It is pleasing to know I hit the mark with at least one attendee.After the talk my schoolfriend and I adjourned to a local coffee shop for a bit of one on one tuition. She has been gatheirng family history dates and documents for many years and, now she is retired, has decided that it is time to get organised. On my suggestion she had downloaded Family Historian software and has been inputting data but she needed help with a couple of functions. I really enjoyed showing her how to import multimedia items into her database, how to add fields to and sort the columns in the record screen and how to set up named list. It was so much fun to sit and teach such an enthusiastic and smart learner.

Friday, October 10, 2014

GAGs is into its third week with a new selection of blog posts I have read and enjoyed for various reasons over the past week. As previously stated the selections here are subject to my personal biases and I make no apology for that.

Presenting some selections from my RSS feeds this week: 1. This collection of images posted by Caitlin of Genealogically Speaking was utterly charming

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

I'm a bit excited about my role as an Official Blogger for Congress 2015 in Canberra and have been thinking of ways to share the excitement.

I realise that much information goes out on Twitter that non Twitter users miss so, as a bit of an experiment, I have set up a page on this blog, AFFHO 2015, that (hopefully) will capture the conversation on Twitter relating toThe 14th Australasian Congress on Genealogy and Heraldry in March. If you look at this page when you visit my blog you will see a summary of the latest news from the Twittersphere.

The content comes from a widget I have created that should capture all tweets that contain AFFHO so it should capture all tweets from the Congress Twitter account as well as those that use the Congress Hashtag #AFFHO. The content will change as new tweets appear so it will display just the latest news.

REMINDER Earlybird registration closes on October 31. Act now to save on fees.

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

As my mother's father passed away just five weeks before my parents' planned wedding Mum and Dad opted for a quiet family celebration. All of Mum's sisters manaaged to have fancy long white wedding gowns but Mum made do with a stylish dusty pink ensemble, I wonder if Mum ever regrets her choice of wedding attire. They had a quiet reception at my Grandmother's home in Kensington before setting off by train for a honeymoon in Jervis Bay.

Mum and Dad were married 66 years ago today, 7th October 1948. Today I think about the 51 years they spent together and the loving environment in which they raised me.

Monday, October 6, 2014

I've been quiet for a day or two! Since I bought my new 4TB hard drive I have spent a bit of time tidying up my files especially my "Sorting" folder. One of the files I found was for one of Mr Geniaus' relatives, Francis Jollie Gowans, who was an officer in the Royal Navy. When I was in England in June I paid a visit to The National Archives where I downloaded some digital files and ordered and copied some original records.This is the record I requested : ADM 340/281. Francis' folder contains over 40 pages of letters, reports and documents. There is a wealth of genealogical information in this file, it is going to take me an hour or two to extract all of the information and enter it into my database. As Francis isn't a direct ancestor this is not high on my priority list.

"Come and see the real thing, come and see the real thing, come and see Come and see the real thing, come and see the real thing, come and see"Access to online resources is convenient and easy but there's nothing like the Real Thing.

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Before travelling overseas earlier this year I realised that I needed a portable hard drive with more than 2TB of storage. I thought that if there was one place on earth I could find such a beast it would be Bangkok.

Dragging Mr GeniAus along I went to the big technology mall, Pantip Plaza, in Bangkok in search of a portable drive of 3 or 4TB but there was none to be found. One stallholder said he could order me one in but that it would cost more than $AU1,000, my response was "Thanks but no thanks".

Since I arrived home from that trip in June I have made regular trips to local electronics stores to see if they had a such a drive, there were plenty of large bulky 4TB drives but no small ones that a little old lady like me could pop in her handbag and tote around the world, that is until two weeks ago. I did the rounds of my three fave stores and at the third I found on the shelves a Seagate Backup Plus Fast 4TB portable drive, a heavy but small answer to this old girl's prayers. Even though I didn't dance on the spot the young salesman appeared quite shocked that an old girl would get so excited,

As I had an overseas trip in the offing (and in Australia we can apply for a 10% tax rebate on goods purchased in the four weeks before we travel) I exercised restraint and didn't make a purchase on impulse. I retreated home, read some reviews and discovered that the device was over $AU100 cheaper at B&H in New York where I like to shop. As I needed wanted the drive before I travelled I realised that I would have to pay a premium (as we nearly always do in Australia).

As it is now less than four weeks until I take off on my next adventure I went to the shops on Friday and bought my new toy. I burnt the midnight oil as I put all of my data, docs and photos onto the drive and then asked Picasa to index the photos and left the computer humming overnight. Now all is organised once more, it is so nice to have everything in one place once more. I'll have lots of space to store the happy snaps I take on holiday.

I wonder how long it will be before portable 8TB drives are on the market, I guess 1 Petabyte drives are just around the corner too.

A devoted wife, mother, grandmother and sister Aunty Kath was a pretty good Aunt. When my mother was working, Aunty Kath always had me over for a "Holiday" in the school holidays and she and Uncle Jack sometimes included me in their family's summer holidays to the beach. When it was discovered that I had a case of nits as a nine year old on holiday with the Maddens I was absolutely distraught. Instead of keeping me at arm's length Aunty Kath got into my little bed and comforted me. I'll never forget that kindness.

When I was a little girl Mum and Kath ran a smallgoods shop and delicatessen in Kensington, NSW. Aunty Kath and Uncle Jack lived in the residence above the shop while Mum, Dad and I stayed there on the weekends when it was Mum's turn to work on Saturdays. As an only child I enjoyed that time spent with the extended family and the easy access to the chocolate malted milkshakes served in the shop.

Aunty Kath encouraged me in my reading by lending me some of the books she received from her book club. it was exciting as a 12 or 13-year-old to be introduced to works for adults, I still remember reading her Monica Dickens books, those by Betty MacDonald and some titles about life in a prisoner of war camp in World War II.

Kath was the only one of the five Duncan girls to get a driver's licence, I remember how I loved going out with her and my cousin in her little black Mini.

Kath (3rd from left) her mother and siblings 1970

Kath was a hard worker, together with her husband Jack Madden she ran a very successful hotel supplies business in Sydney. (see my post on the green plates). They retired a couple of times but soon found themselves back in business. After Uncle Jack's death Aunty Kath went to work for their accountant, she was a whizz with figures. Although she was in her mid seventies her co-workers all thought she was in her early sixties, Aunty Kath was as sharp as a tack.

My mum and Aunty Kath had a very close relationship, every Saturday for many years Kath would pick Mum up in her car and they would head off to shop and visit their mother, Ethel, and sister, Eileen. Included in these excursions would be some clothes shopping. The Duncan girls loved to chase down a bargain.

Friday, October 3, 2014

I know I've posted previously on netiquette but I can't seem to find that post (I need better tags!) anyway it's about time for another rant to share some more thoughts. I hadn't planned this spontaneous post, it was something I just had to get off my chest and a resource I found gave me a shove.

Recently two newish Tweeps representing genealogy organisations I am familiar with have starting tweeting in earnest. I have been concerned that these newbies are not using Twitter effectively to promote their brands or messages.

It appears that they log onto Twitter at a particular time, send out a barrage of tweets and then go away for a few days. What is also unfortunate is that they also retweet indiscriminately posting items that are not particularly relevant to their organisations' missions or aims. Retweeting alone is not satisfactory they must also post original material.

While it is fantastic to see people embracing social media there is a danger that if they donn't think about why, when and what they are tweeting their presence will be ineffective or even annoying.

Although it is directed at business the tips are also pertinent to organisations and individuals. The very first point for Facebook "It's okay to update several times a day but space out your posts every few hours" is relevant to Twitter and the new tweeps I mentioned above.

Last week's inital collection of GAGs received some enthusiastic responses - certainly enough for me to continue with this trial.

As I have read through my RSS feeds this week I have saved links to several blog posts into my Evernote Genealogy Notebook with the GAGs tag. I didn't know how many I had until I started to write this post. Thankfully I had not gone crazy so I didn't have to delete too many selections.

As previously stated the selections here are subject to my personal biases and I make no apology for that.